asimpy

A simple discrete event simulation framework in Python using async/await.

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Thanks to the creators of SimPy for inspiration.

Core Concepts

Discrete event simulation (DES) simulates systems in which events occur at discrete points in time. The simulation maintains a virtual clock and executes events in chronological order. Unlike real-time systems, the simulation jumps directly from one event time to the next, skipping empty intervals. (Time steps are often referred to as "ticks".)

Async/Await

Python's async/await syntax enables cooperative multitasking without threads. Functions defined as async def return coroutine objects when called. These coroutines can be paused at await points and later resumed. More specifically, when a coroutine executes value = await expr, it:

1. yields the awaited object expr to its caller;
2. suspends execution at that point;
3. resumes later when send(value) is called on it; an thend
4. returns the value passed to send() as the result of the await expression inside the resumed coroutine.

asimpy uses this mechanism to pause and resume coroutines to simulate simultaneously execution. This is similar to the yield-based mechanism used in SimPy.